What is the difference of an Annual Assembly with a conference?
The main difference is on how the sessions are conducted. IIW is based on collaborative work. In our sessions we have discussion and development of collaborative work. You may also experience the possibility of being part of the process of developing of a Standard, a IIW Statement or a Position Paper.

How do I become engaged with the IIW experts?
To be part of the IIW community, you may consider joining your National Delegation. This can be done through the IIW Responsible Member in your country prior to the Annual Assembly.
The IIW Responsible Member will have compiled a list of people from your country who will act as Delegates or Experts in the IIW Commissions.
To find and contact the IIW Responsible Member Society, please visit International Institute of Welding / IIW members.
If your country does not have an existing Delegate to a Commission which interests you, then you may ask your IIW Responsible Member to make you the Delegate.
If you are not a Delegate, you may still be involved as an Expert or Observer in the Commission but you will have no voting rights.
The information as to which IIW Commission you wish to attend as an Expert or Observer, is normally given to the IIW Annual Assembly organisers when a person registers for the Annual Assembly.

How do I become a Delegate or a member of a commission?
Each Commission has one Delegate only representing his country. The Delegate will be responsible for voting for the country on any appropriate issue arising at the meeting of that Commission. Only one Delegate per Commission is allowed.
A person may be appointed as Delegate for one or more IIW Commissions.
The appointment as a Delegate is made by the IIW Responsible Member Society on the basis of the person’s competency, knowledge and experience in the particular subject(s) involved in the IIW Commission. Each Delegate is listed amongst the members of the relevant Commission.
To find and contact the IIW Responsible Member Society, please visit International Institute of Welding / IIW members
To become the member of a Commission, you may also contact the Chair of the Commission (see IIW working units)or send a message to iiw@iiwelding.net

How do I become an Expert or a Member of a Commission?
Experts are approved by the IIW Responsible Member Society on the basis of the person’s competency, knowledge and experience in the particular subject(s) involved in the IIW Commission.
Each IIW responsible Member Society can appoint more than one Expert in a Commission.
To become the member of a commission, you may contact the Chair of the commission (see IIW working units) or send a message to iiw@iiwelding.net
Anyone attending the Annual Assembly or a meeting of a Commission is allowed to express his opinions during meetings contributing to the discussion.

How do I select the session to attend?
At the IIW Annual Assembly sessions are arranged for each Commission. You may select the commission you want to join here International Institute of Welding /IIW Commissions, based on the topic and the scope.
Please consider that each IIW Commission Chair is responsible for setting an agenda for the meeting. You may join the IIW Commission to access the agenda. The Agendas will be made available prior to the IIW Annual Assembly.

What is the IIW International Conference?
The IIW International conference will work on a similar basis as a standard conference.
Given that the event will be held on-line, it will be constituted in two parts. The presentation of invited papers will be followed by a panel discussion, where IIW experts will answer questions from the audience.

How many sessions will I be allowed to attend?
You may attend as many sessions as you wish.
To allow the meeting to run as smoothly as possible in most of the time zones, the meetings will be held 13:00 to 16:00 CEST. If you wish to attend two concurrent sessions, you may choose which one to attend live and which to view recorded at a later date.

How do I become a Member of the IIW?
IIW is a non-for-profit membership organisation whose Members are Non For Profit distributing organisation well established in their own countries. There is a comprehensive set of requirements for organisations to become an IIW Member Society.
If you are interested in applying for  IIW membership, please contact iiw@iiwelding.net.
If you are interested in becoming a Member of our community of expert, you just need to apply to join a Commission. You may select the commission you want to join here International Institute of Welding / IIW Commissions, based on the topic and the scope and contact the Chair or send a message to iiw@iiwleding.net.

How do I become a Member of the IIW Community of experts?
To become a Member of our community of expert, you just need to apply to join a Commission. You may select the commission you want to join here International Institute of Welding / IIW Commissions, based on the topic and the scope and contact the or send a message to iiw@iiwleding.net.
Please contact the Responsible Member Society of your country for further information.

When was IIW founded?
What about its history. IIW was established in 1948 by Associations from 13 countries in Europe, Africa and America. The history of IIW is available at IIW History.

How many participants do you expect for this event?
Every year the face-to-face IIW Annual Assembly gathers more than 600 participants on average. Based on the reduced costs such no travel and accommodation for participation to the on-line event, we expect a significantly increased number of participants.
In the last edition in 2020 participation exceeded 650 participants, and we expect more in 2021.

Have you got any material to showing the event?
We’re promoting the on-line assembly mostly on-line. A full set of information is available on International Institute of Welding (iiw2021.com).
Please contact the IIW communication specialist rosario.russo@iiwelding.net if you need any material.

What are the registration options?
The standard registration has a full or a Young Professional rate. These allow a complete experience: joining all the sessions and the relevant recordings (as available), the International Conference, the opening and awards ceremony, and the closing ceremony.
In the case of companies enrolling a number of participants, corporate fees have been included to grant access to multiple participants at a discounted fee.
It is also possible to enroll for the International Conference only at a very discounted fee.
A one session option has also been included, to allow access to one session only, with full access to the other content (it doesn’t include the access to recordings).

Is it possible to upgrade the “one session” registration during the AA to visit other sessions?
The registration fee for one session is offered, for joining just one session. This can be upgraded during the event to a full registration.

What is the registration address? Is the registration now open? Will there be any form of corporate / group registration or is it only individual registration?
To register visit https://iiw2021.com
We’re offering the possibility of Group registration (5 and 10 accesses). Since this cannot be managed through the registration portal, please contact registrations@iiw2021.com. For groups larger that 10 registrants, please contact the IIW Secretariat at iiw@iiwelding.net.

Is the access personal or is it possible to replace the person?
Each individual will be recognised through his registration pass; speaking and voting rights are assigned to this pass. The access is personal, and the person cannot be replaced.

How will voting be managed during the sessions?
During the sessions, the Chair has the ability to launch a vote. This can be a simple survey on the participants agreement on a given item, or a formal vote open to Delegates only.

What are the rules for voting? Does everyone have the right to vote?
This on-line IIW Annual Assembly follows the same rules as the face-to-face assemblies.
During some meetings the Chairman will request for  formal voting, where only Delegates will be allowed to vote. The list of delegates is managed by each IIW responsible member society.
Please contact the member(s) of your Country (list of members available on http://iiwelding.org/iiw-members) to understand the rules applicable to your national delegation.

Are there any limitations on participation for any country? (e.g. to meetings of IAB group A & B)
The technology itself does not put any limitation. According to the IIW rules, some groups may have restricted participation. This is the case of administrative groups (e.g. the IIW General Assembly, with a limitation of three representatives per Country or the IIW IAB groups with 2 representatives of each IIW IAB Member).

How will you identify and check if the Participants has the right to vote for the meetings of the IIW International Authorisation Board (IIW IAB)?
Each individual will be recognised through his registration pass; speaking and voting rights are assigned to the pass.
Voting rights to the IIW IAB meetings will be assigned by each IIW Authorised Nominated Body (IIW ANB) or IIW Authorised Nominated Body for Company Certification (IIW ANBCC).

How will I get IT support during the sessions?
IT support will be offered during each session by an IT expert joining each session. To troubleshoot, you just have to ask for support on the Chat or send a message to support@iiwelding.net

How do you get immediate support during the meeting if you have problems with the conference system and it crashes?
This can be obtained through the Chat at the information desk or by sending a message to support@iiwelding.net

If you need to find an IIW Staff member or even any attendee during the on-line assembly, is there a way to locate them within the site and text them?
IIW staff will be available in a dedicated and well recognisable area in the Conference lobby. The IIW staff will provide support to Chairs, Attendees and representatives of Commissions as relates to IIW procedure. A separate area will be offered for Information technology support for anyone needing assistance.

What is the cost to sponsor the IIW 2021 on-line Annual Assembly?
The cost depends on the sponsorship options and the relevant impact on participants.
For further information please contact sponsorships@iiw2021.com.

How can a sponsor increase the impact on the welding community through this on-line IIW Annual Assembly?
Sponsoring options on benefits include:
a. an advertisement space with a video of 30 seconds to be shown before and after each meeting session: a definitive opportunity to reach the chosen technical audience.
b. an advertisement space in the conference lobby: everyone entering the conference will be exposed to brand and products
c. a virtual booth, with the ability to discuss with contacts, interact, exchange virtual business cards, show videos of products or your materials made available for download;
d. the sponsoring of the associated event titled “Welded Art Photographic Exhibition”: a digital collection of welded exhibits from around the world for all attendees to view along with a booklet available for download to all attendees and all those interested. Brands could circulate in this environment over the next year to a wide variety technical individuals, companies and countries.
The virtual environment offers greater sponsorship flexibility, targeting and accommodating the specific needs, expectations and requirements of sponsors.

Does the virtual booth offer the same meeting opportunities similar to physical booths where sponsors can meet current and perspective customers?
Each booth may offer the possibility of organising sessions for live interaction with customers, in the form of a conference (e.g. satellite sessions), meetings and a live Chat.
An advantage is that everyone getting in contact will be identified with a contact that may help follow up after the IIW Annual Assembly.

What is the design of a booth in the virtual sponsor area?
Each booth has a standard design, which offers the possibility to be customised with a logo, brand name, posters, videos, link to website and other contents and a live Chat area.

Will participants be able to address questions directly to speakers?
All participants will be allowed to address questions. The recommended method is through the Chat. In each session, a group composed of the Session Chair, the Commission Chair, speakers and experts will also have the possibility to speak, present and interact with participants.

How does a presentation get on-line? Are all presentations managed by the Chair?
Presenters may choose to present their content from their device (PC, Tablet, Laptop) by sharing themselves their screens; in this case, they’ll have full control on what is shown. As an alternative, since a director will be following each session, the presenter or the Chair may ask for support.
In case of pre-registered presentations, it is recommended that these are put on-line by the director under the guidance of the Commission Chair.

Can each participant join any IIW Commission? How it will be recognised by the Chair?
Participants with full registration will be able to join any session. The Chair will recognise the participant’s presence in real time, as there will be a list of participants in the Chair’s panel.
Active participation is always possible through the Chat and for voting (if allowed).

Is there a limitation in the length of a presentation intended?
The duration of the presentation is a decision of the Session Chair. Please consider that in an on-line environment, presentations should be shortened to ensure they make the proper impact on participants. For a technical paper, the recommended duration is 12 to 15 minutes.

Are the Chairs collecting full papers ahead of the sessions?
How is a recommendation for Welding in the World realized in the meetings? This on-line IIW Annual Assembly follows the same rules as the face-to-face assemblies.
Chairs of IIW Commissions are already collecting papers. Recommendations to publish in Welding in the World will follow the usual rules as well, with a group screening of documents and voting of delegates.

Will guidelines be sent out on equipment needed to run a session?
The meeting will be run with ZOOM. See System requirements for Windows, macOS, and Linux.

What is the deadline for presentations so that they are ready for the IIW Annual Assembly?
Pre-recorded presentations should be made available before 1 July 2021. Please don’t forget to contact the Chairman of your meeting to announce your presentation as soon as possible, to let the Chair manage the Agenda for the meeting.

Do I need to pre-record my presentation?
Speakers may present their contributions live or pre-recorded. Pre-recording is recommended to limit risks associated with unstable internet connections

What format do you recommend for prerecording the presentations?
Pre-recorded presentations include a video of the speaker, his content and his voice. These should be recorded in format MP4 compressed, aspect Ratio 16:9and with a 1280×720 pixels.